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What's Happening
With Chinese Parts?
The
information contained herein is based partially on news articles, but
primarily on "industry information." Therefore, while we consider it
to be accurate, we cannot document everything contained on this page.
August, 2011
Update: It's still happening. Last week we ordered over $5,000
worth of parts. We received about $250 worth.
May 25, 2010 Update:
We've been told the EPA and Customs are at it again. While we've
been getting parts fairly reliably for the past 6 months or so, we've now
been told we can't get any more Hammerhead parts until sometime in July.
The EPA has apparently required that carburetors be completely sealed and
absolutely unserviceable, and that is stopping all loads of parts that
have been previously shipped. It may also create a carburetor
shortage.
The Problem
Since early 2009, Chinese parts, and parts
with Chinese components, have become increasingly difficult to obtain.
This has created upset customers, some of whom think we're just holding
the parts for the fun of it. Obviously, we don't make any money
until we sell a part, so that's not the case. This backlog is
consuming much of our time, and we're NOT making money on parts we can't
sell.
The Cause
A few news reports have indicated "issues"
with trade with the leaders of the U. S. and China. Industry sources
say the U. S. placed more restrictions on imports from China, and then
China responded in same. Not to be outdone, the U. S. responded
again, and now it's difficult to get "containers" through U. S. Customs.
One example of this occurred in mid-2009 when
ten containers of parts were being shipped to Hammerhead in the Dallas area. The
containers arrived in California and were sent to the U. S. Customs facility
in Texas -- less than an hour from
Hammerhead. Apparently, U. S. Customs wanted a "Made in China"
sticker to be on every single part, including screws, nuts, and other
parts way too small to be labeled. After sitting for several months,
the containers were shipped back to California for further inspection, and then
released -- one container at a time -- after Hammerhead paid a fine.
The parts were then shipped back to Dallas. Meanwhile, thousands of
customers were affected. We can only hope this change will be
temporary.
This is apparently affecting parts supplies from
Hammerhead, Dinli, and Carter. Update: Carter has burned to
the ground.
Dinli Parts
Dinli pulled out of the U. S. years ago,
leaving their customers with no place to buy parts. A U. S. company
made arrangement to import parts, reportedly paid for them, and never
received them. They sell what parts they have left over and are
arranging for some aftermarket items. We now have an arrangement
where we can get parts from China, but it often takes 3 - 4 weeks because
of shipping. However, some parts are being backordered, and we're
wondering if it's because of Customs, as well. We can't seem to get
an answer.
Hammerhead Parts
When we first had shortages, we purchased
some parts from another supplier who previously imported their karts.
We don't get as good a discount from them, but we were able to get some
parts we couldn't get from Hammerhead, and while it took away our profit,
it allowed us to fill orders. Now, they are running out, too.
Occasionally, we'll find another Hammerhead
dealer who has a part, and we'll pay retail from them so we can fill an
order. We lose money, but it takes care of the customer. So,
one can easily see this is neither profitable, nor a "picnic," for us.
Hammerhead brings in some crucial parts, such as
CDI's, by air freight. Air freight seems to skip some of the
scrutiny of Customs, and arrives within about a week (overnight, but it
still has to go through Customs). Unfortunately, they can only do
this for small, crucial parts, as it costs hundreds of dollars to ship a
small box overnight from China to Dallas.
Pricing
We don't know if it's caused by the
extra requirements from Customs, the cost of fuel, and/or the cost of raw
materials, but we get price increases on every invoice we receive.
In some cases, we find we're selling a part for less than it costs us to
replace it. We left prices alone for a while, thinking they would
stabilize, but we've had to raise some of our prices to keep from selling
at a loss. If you have an order pending, it
will be filled at the price quoted on your invoice, even if the price has
gone up. The only exception is if we have to buy the part from
another source, and we'll give you the option prior to shipping.
Credit Cards
Unlike most online stores, we run
credit card charges manually and you are not charged until the package is
ready to ship.
Summary
We're doing our best to locate and provide
our customers with parts. We're sp ending
3 to 4 times the labor in filling orders, as we spend time with customers
regarding the status of orders, and time spent with our vendors trying to
beg for parts.
If you desire to cancel your order, we
certainly understand. However, no one else is going to be able to
get them any sooner than we can, as we all get our parts from the same
place, and we are only an hour away from the warehouse. Since some of
these parts have been on order since February, we
suspect most parts that come in have already been sold, so if you place an
order elsewhere, you might have to wait for a 2nd shipment, and possibly
pay a higher price.
We appreciate your business and patience as
we work through this situation.
Take me to the
Reliable Go-Karts website.
Take me
to the Reliable Go-Karts online store.
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